In Canadian application Serial No: 2,600,216 of Herman published Mar. 4, 2009 is disclosed a silo or tank which is cylindrical and stands up from a base to a raised upper end at which it can be filled. Such tanks can hold up to 250 tons of a particulate material such as sand. The main point concerning the Herman tank is that it is portable and includes a coupling for attachment to a trailer so that it can be moved to a temporary location.
Often such tanks are mounted on rig mats at a work site or on other unstable base support. As the mounting is temporary, there is no possibility for foundation work to hold the tank stable.
As such tanks contain large amounts of material they apply significant force to the base on which they stand and also the consequences of instability leading to toppling are severe.